RACE: National Runoffs: Goodyear Racing Friday report

THREE WINS, NINE PODIUMS FOR GOODYEAR-EQUIPPED RACERS AT RUNOFFS

ELKHART LAKE, Wisc. (Sept. 24, 2010) -- The first day of racing in the 2010 Sports Car Club of America's National Championship Runoffs presented by Subway produced three wins, two podium sweeps and nine podium finishes by drivers racing on Goodyear tires Friday.

The Runoffs, which are contested at Road America, continue Saturday and Sunday with eight races each day. The event, which has been called auto racing's version of the Olympic Games, features races for purpose-built open wheel race cars, production-based cars modified for racing and everything in between. Goodyear is the winningest tiremaker in Runoffs history.

Pete Shadowen, Jon Brakke and Lawrence Loshak won national championships on Goodyear rubber Friday.

Shadowen, Florida's Loxahatchee Flash, won the GT Lite race. Shadowen started on the pole, fell to third place at the start and then rallied to retake the lead on the fourth lap. He fended off two challenges before taking the checkered flag first. Former Runoffs champs Jim Dentici and Kent Prather finished second third, both on Goodyear tires.

"I'm usually not very comfortable going all out on the first lap," Shadowen said. "I usually like to get a little temperature in the tires and just feel a little more comfortable before I start pushing it. I certainly didn't have a problem following the past champions for a few laps."

At the end, Shadowen was a champ as well.

Brakke, of Fargo, N.D., started on pole in E Production, lost ground at the start, and charged back into the lead on his way to winning.

"I thought that if I could get ahead of everybody else to where there was no fighting in the corners, we would be able to show the kind of times that we turned in qualifying," Brakke said. "Then the throttle stuck open."

Brakke overcame the mechanical trouble to win with the Goodyear-shod cars driven by Greg Ira and Aaron Downey finishing second and third.

"Goodyear makes those stickey darn tires," Brakke said with a smile.

Loshak, who lives in nearby Milwaukee, started second in D Sports Racing. His victory was his second national championship, having previously won in E Production.

Michael Scully, who lives in not-so-nearby Calabasas, Calif., finished third.

Loshak said the hard, cool winds that swept the area surrounding the track Friday proved to be very tricky for the racers.

"Its nerve wracking when you're by yourself," Loshak said. "You check your gauges and everything is fine and all of a sudden, whomp, this big gust of wind comes. Its fine when you're going down the straightaway, but in the middle of the carousel or going through the kink it's quite surprising, especially at the speeds we go through there nowadays."

Jeremy Treadway finished second in Formula F after starting fourth.

More information about Goodyear Racing is available at www.racegoodyear.com. More information about the SCCA is available at www.scca.com.

-source: goodyear